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KCMH
KCMH is the NBC affiliate that serves the Tri-City Bay, CA area. It broadcasts on channel 4. History Sign on and events that led to it (Mid-70s-1977) KCMH-TV signed on for the first time in the early hours of August 4, 1977 as an O&O station of NBC, after all ties with KABC-TV (now known as KABG-TV) were cut as a result of the relations between the latter and the former reaching a souring point of no return in the Mid-70s, leading KABC to become an independent station and remaining that way until the 1990s. Disastrous Start (August-November 1977) During the first 2 months, KCMH had no local newscasts and was not widespread over-the-air, only reaching as far as the Northeast portion of Palm Harbor with its Sunset Hills transmitter. At first, Tri-City Bay residents thought that NBC's station was a complete failure, and that the affiliation should go back to KABC-TV. NBC however, refused to let the station fail, and got to work creating new transmitters for their station, which led to one of the station's defining features, "Ultra High Frequency" transmitters, especially in a time when all stations (with the exception of KTCB & KVRO) in Tri-City Bay used VHF transmitters. Turns out, that was a huge mistake, as UHF wasn't considerably desired, and only helped to sour Tri-City Bay's public opinions. NBC immediately jumped ship & left the station alone to fend for itself, but not before constructing VHF transmitters for KCMH (Most of them were placed only 5 meters away from the UHF transmitters), and giving it away to a local business. Damage Control and Newscasts' Rise (November 1977-1979) After being sold off in Early-November KCMH soon introduced their own newscasts, while they were at 6PM and 11PM (all Pacific Standard Time), this was fortunately remedied by the station's choice of news team, which was done through a raffling contest (Another defining feature of KCMH at the Time), with the winners being Denny David, Jenna Ryan, and Eric Clayton (all three have since retired). The former two were assigned as News Anchors & the latter was assigned as Meteorologist, this led to the premiere of "Eyewitness News" on November 26, 1977. KCMH equipped a "unique" news broadcasting format, placing satirical views, while not affecting the news story, and brief recaps of news stories towards the end of a newscast, to name a few. This format would end up being quickly overhauled, with the satirical views strategy being removed, while the brief recap portion was changed to be both towards the end of a newscast, and to also be midway through a newscast (This strategy was dropped by the time KCMH adopted the "NewsChannel 4 moniker). By the next year, KCMH rose to become the #1 station in Tri-City Bay, though the station dropped to a #2 from 1987-1991, a #5 from 1993-1995, and #2 again from 2003-2004 (The same year that the station started titling their newscasts as "NBC 4") it remained in that spot until 2005 (Once KTCB took that spot and became #1). Meanwhile, though, the station's owners had tried to convince the public that this station wasn't going fall on their watch, most of the locals didn't buy it, and suggested that they just shut it down once-and-for-all. They almost complied when they took down all of their UHF transmitters, and even two VHF transmitters, but ceased when some residents pleaded to them that the station should get another chance, which the owners also complied with. Eventually, by 1979 the owners finally decided that "Enough was Enough", and ceased broadcasting of any NBC original programming. An NBC Affiliate with no NBC programming (1979-1982) The timing couldn't be any more perfect, as the NBC television network wasn't doing well during the Fred Silverman Era, and thanks to the network giving up KCMH-TV, they were never forced to air any NBC original programming, even as an affiliate of it, still participating in the parody of "We're Proud" "We're Loud!" (which led to the introduction of the "4" that was used in different forms from 1980-1998). This practice would continue until Early 1982, when NBC Original Programming started to show up on the schedule again. By that point, the opinions of Tri-City Bay residents had changed, and the owners decided to introduce both a morning newscast and 5PM newscast in the Summer of 1983. Complete Recovery (1983-1995) By that point, KCMH-TV had now become a station that was impossible not to notice, with rival stations, and even NBC being surprised by the station's recovery. The owners from Tri-City Bay gladly returned the station to NBC in December of 1983. The change in owners for the first time in six years barely impacted the status of the station, but helped in the construction of 3 new VHF Analog transmitters. 1987 oversaw the introduction of a Noon Newscast hosted by the now-deceased Zimmer Welles, and 1990 saw the reinstatement of weekend newscasts after their quiet cancellation in 1978. 1992 also saw an update to the 1980 logo that was mostly well-received. 1994 was where a chain reaction of realignments occurred in a number of markets, and Tri-City Bay was no exception, with all stations switching to new affiliations in 1995 (KTCB went from CBS 2, to Fox 2 Tri-City Bay, KABC went from being KABC 7, to being ABC 7, and KVRO went from Big 13, to KVRO CBS 13), thanks to NBC's hold on the station, KCMH became one of, if not, the only privately owned station to not change their affiliation at all. Another thing that also happened in 1995, was the retirement of the "Eyewitnes News" branding after being in use for 18 years, introducing the "News4" branding that same year. Prosperity (1996-2005) KCMH was doing well, both in newscasts, and programs. To commemorate this, KCMH announced in 1998 that they would start filming their newscasts in 720p High-definition, and introduced them in June of that same year, along with a new logo to replace the previous one from 1992 (It also replaced the 18 year-old "4", with a brand-new variant that used a different typeface), the 1998 logo would receive mixed reactions due to it being less creative than the logos preceeding it. The Fall of 1999 saw the newscasts being renamed to "News Channel 4" (Which lasted until March 2003 before the newscasts were renamed once again to NBC 4), and VHF Digital Transmitters being constructed and placed into operation, and 2005 saw the station fall back into the #2 spot (and remain in that spot as of 2016). The permanent move to Palm Harbor, and O&O no more (2005-2006) December 2005, staff were feeling light headed, some even collapsing, and no one knew why. Their solution, was to move to a temporary studio in Palm Harbor for a few months, and investigate what the cause was. By February of 2006, the investigation came to an end, and the cause was now clear and simple, Sewer Gases. More specifically, the studio was, for obvious reasons, built underneath a sewer pipeline. A crack in the foundation and floor of one of the washrooms in the studio, went unnoticed for 28 years, allowing it to emanate both sulfur dioxide & methane gas. That crack had recently gotten bigger, allowing more harmful gases to emanate. Unsurprisingly, everyone now knew about the crack, with the station even planning on getting rid of the crack, before it becomes an eyesore. The investigation had managed to give the station a good reason to seal that crack in the studio. Even after fixing the problem, KCMH-TV had decided that they needed a change in scenery, and thus, their temporary Palm Harbor studio became their permanent studio. June 2006 saw the station be one of the few NBC O&O stations sold off to Media General (Bringing 23 years of being an O&O, to an end). Newscast Titles * Eyewitness News (1977-1984) * Channel 4 Eyewitness News(1984-1995) * News 4 (1995-1999) * NewsChannel 4 (1999-2003) * NBC 4/NBC 4 Today (2003-Present) Newscast Themes * KNBC 1975 News Theme (1977-1984) * KNBC News Package - Tuesday Productions (1984-1993) * KNBC 1993 Theme (1993-1995) * WTVJ Custom News Package - Metro Music (1995-1997) * WRC - Working 4 You (1997-1999) * Prime News (NBC Version) - Newsmusic Central (1999-2001) * The Tower V.1 - 615 Music (2001-2005) * The NBC Collection - Gari Media Group (2005-2007) * Media General News Package - JDK Music (2007-2015) * Canvas - Stephen Arnold Music (2015-2017) * WCMH 2016 News Theme + WCMH 2016 Morning News Theme (2017-Present) Owner(s) * NBCUniversal (August-November 1977, Sold to a Local Business. 1983-2006, Sold to Media General) * A business in Tri-City Bay (1977-1983, Returned to NBC) * Media General (2006-2017, Owner aquired by Nexstar Media Group) * Nexstar Media Group (2017-Present) Notable On-Air Staff Anchors Weekday Edition *Jerry McConnell (NBC 4 Today, Main Anchor. 2007-Present) *Riley Williams (NBC 4 Today, Main Anchor. 2002-Present) *Daniel Brown (NBC 4 Today, Fill-In Anchor. 1997-Present) *Jennifer Broadwell (NBC 4 at Noon, Main Anchor. NBC 4 at 11PM, Fill-In Anchor. 1997-Present) *Jack Winn (NBC 4 at Noon, Fill-In Anchor. NBC 4 at 4:30PM & 5PM, Main Anchor. 2005-Present) *Len Michaels (NBC 4 at 4:30PM, Main Anchor. NBC 4 at 6PM & 11PM, Fill-In Anchor. 1994-Present) *Finn Strom (NBC 4 at 5PM, Main Anchor. 2011-Present) *Karen Grant (NBC 4 at 5PM, Main Anchor. NBC 4 at 11PM, Main Anchor. Mid 1980s-Present) *Stephen Symone (NBC 4 at 6PM, Main Anchor. 1995-Present) *Brandon Milo (NBC 4 at 6PM, Fill-In Anchor. NBC 4 at 4:30PM, Fill-In Anchor. 1992-Present) *Ken Shepard (NBC 4 at 11PM, Main Anchor. 1983-Present) Weekend Edition *Steve Lawrence (NBC 4 Today Weekend, Main Anchor. 2013-Present) *Sarah Brandt (NBC 4 at Noon Weekend, Main Anchor. NBC 4 at 6PM Weekend, Fill-In Anchor. 2000-Present) *Franklin Nelson (NBC 4 at 5PM & 6PM Weekend, Main Anchor. 1987-Present) *Jim Franz (NBC 4 at 11PM Weekend, Main Anchor. NBC 4 at 5PM Weekend, Fill-In Anchor. 1990-Present) 4Warn Stormteam Meteorologists *Geoff Pennant (AMS Seal of Approval) - Chief Meteorologist (NBC 4 at 4:30PM, 6PM, and 11PM, Weekday Edition. 1985-Present) *Keri Bates (AMS Seal of Approval) - Meteorologist (NBC 4 at 4:30PM, 6PM, and 11 PM, Weekend Edition. 1995-Present) *Zachary Greene - Meteorologist (NBC 4 Today Weekday. 2009-Present) *Kevin Shepard - Meteorologist (NBC 4 Today & NBC 4 at Noon, Weekend Edition. 2002-Present ) *June Powell - Meteorologist (NBC 4 at Noon Weekday & NBC 4 at 5PM Weekday/Weekend Editions. 1998-Present) Arial4ce (Bell 412 Helicopter) *Ryan Davis - Main Pilot (2011-Present) *Larry Lewis - Fill-In Pilot (2005-Present) *Sandra Wynne - Main Arial Reporter and Photographer (2014-Present) *Nicolas Willis - Fill-In Arial Reporter and Photographer (2001-Present) NBC 4 Sports Staff *Kenny Burns - Sports Anchor (2001-Present) *Lewis Burrows - Sports Anchor/Reporter (2009-Present) *Jeff Dalewood - Sports Reporter (2004-Present) *Pete Kramer - Sports Director (1979-Present) Reporters *Patricia Loft - Reporter (1989-Present) *Stephanie Winston - General Assignment Reporter (1993-Present) *Larry Harris - Traffic Reporter (1986-Present) *Ren Bauer - Reporter (2015-Present) *Conner Hurst - General Assignment Reporter (1998-Present) *Benny Powers - Reporter (1986-Present) Notable Former On-Air Staff *Denny David - Anchor (6PM & 11PM) - Eyewitness News & Channel 4 Eyewitness News Era (1977-1988, later at KLLL-TV, retired in 1995) *Jenna Ryan - Anchor (6PM & 11PM) - Eyewitness News, Channel 4 Eyewitness News, & News 4 Era (1977-1998, later at KPAD-TV, retired in 2003) *Eric Clayton - Meteorologist/Chief Meteorologist (5PM, 6PM and 11PM) - Eyewitness News, Channel 4 Eyewitness News, News 4, NewsChannel 4, & NBC 4 Era (1977-2004, retired) *Sean Lewis - Reporter - Eyewitness News & Channel 4 Eyewitness News Era (1978-1990, later at KRSK-TV & KOCC-TV, retired 2001) *Dean Walker - Sports Anchor (Morning and Noon Newscasts) - Channel 4 Eyewitness News, News 4, & NewsChannel 4 Era (1989-2000, now at KTCB-TV) *Steven Woodward - Reporter - Channel 4 Eyewitness News Era (1985-1990, now at KCB-TV) *Jonas Peterson - Reporter - Channel 4 Eyewitness News & News 4 Era (1993-1999, now at KCB-TV) *Mackenzie Gray - Sports Anchor (Weekend Noon Newscasts) - News 4 & Newschannel 4 Era (1996-2002) *Ray Bison - Reporter & Fill-In Anchor (Weekday Newscasts) - Newschannel 4 & NBC 4 Era (2001-2012) *Zimmer Welles - Anchor (Noon Weekday Newscasts) - Channel 4 Eyewitness News, News 4, Newschannel 4 & NBC 4 Era (1987-2010, died from a heart attack in 2010) *Terry McCormick - Special Assignments Reporter - Eyewitness News & Channel 4 Eyewitness News Era (1982-1991, later at KFPL-TV & WNBS-TV, retired in 2014) *Riley Blue - Reporter - Channel 4 Eyewitness News, News 4 & Newschannel 4 Era (1990-2003, later at KFPL-TV as an Editor, was one of the many survivors in the latter station's 2004 studio explosion. Retired) *Shaun Bucklead - Fill-In anchor (6PM & 11PM) - NBC 4 Era (2006-2017, now at WPAD-TV) *Kelly Verond - Reporter - Newschannel 4 & NBC 4 Era (2003-2018, left to pursue other careers) *Clark DuPre - Anchor (Weekend Morning and Noon Newscasts) - News 4, Newschannel 4 & NBC 4 Era (1996-2009) *Mike Carter - Sports Anchor - News 4 & Newschannel 4 Era (1995-2002) *Johnathan Springsteen - Fill-In Anchor (Weekday Newscasts) - Channel 4 Eyewitness News Era (1984-1993, later at KVRO-TV, retired in 2000, passed away in 2013 from Lung Cancer) *Eric Pool - Anchor (Morning Newscasts) - Newschannel 4 and NBC 4 Era (2002-2006, now at WWRC) *Jared Maloney - Anchor (12PM & 5PM Weekday Newscasts, and 11PM Weekend Newscasts) - Channel 4 Eyewitness News, Newschannel 4, and NBC 4 Era (1993-2018, now the main 11PM Anchor for KNBS' Newscasts) *Amy Glennendale - Meteorologist (12PM) - NBC 4 Era (2004-2013, now at KHAX) *Jessica Walker - Anchor (5PM & 6tPM weekend newscasts) - NBC 4 Era (2005-2015, now at KOKR as an anchor for the latter's morning newscasts) *Sam Taft - Sports Anchor - Newschannel 4 & NBC 4 Era (2000-2017. Now at WBTV) *Glen Flynn - Anchor (Morning Newscasts) - Eyewitness News,Channel 4 Eyewitness News, Newschannel 4, and NBC 4 Era (1982-2006. Later at WFIX from 2006-2013, and WWJ from 2013-2019, retired January 1, 2019) Gallery NBC 4 1987.png|1986-1992 Logo NBC 4 1992.png|1992-1998 Logo KCMH 1997.png|1998-2008 Logo KCMH 2002 open.png|News open from 2001-2003 NBC 4 2011 open.png|News open from 2011-2015 KCMH 2015-2017 open.png|News open from 2015-2017 NBC 4 Eyewitness News Logo.png|Channel 4 Eyewitness News Logo from 1992-1997 KCMH News 4 1995 Logo.png|News 4 Logo from 1995-1998 KCMH News 4 Logo.png|News 4 logo from 1998-1999 News Channel 4 Logo.png|News Channel 4 Logo from 1999-2003 (before they started titling their newscasts as "NBC 4") Category:Tri-City Bay, CA Category:California Category:NBC affiliated stations Category:Current NBC Affiliates Category:Channel 4 Category:Television channels and stations established in 1977 Category:Nexstar Media Group